Entertainment
Dame Deborah James’ podcast honoured with top award after her death from bowel cancer aged 40-Emily Bashforth-Entertainment – Metro
You, Me and the Big C was loved by countless listeners.
Dame Deborah James died of bowel cancer aged 40 (Picture: Deborah James)
The work of cancer campaigners Dame Deborah James, Rachel Bland and Lauren Mahon has been honoured at the British Podcast Awards after their offering – You, Me and the Big C – scooped the podcast champion award.
Dame Deborah, Bland and Mahon started the podcast in 2018. The trio, who were all former or current cancer patients, candidly discussed life with cancer and their treatment.
Bland died in September that year at the age of 40, two years after being diagnosed with breast cancer.
Meanwhile Dame Deborah died late last month after receiving end of life care for bowel cancer, making Mahon the only surviving original host.
Dame Deborah – who was awarded her damehood personally by Prince William shortly before her death – raised over £7million for cancer research in her final months, with the likes of her InTheStyle clothing collection and autobiography raking in great sums.
The campaigner’s funeral was held on Wednesday, with friends and family in attendance to celebrate her life.
The campaigner raised millions of pounds for cancer research (Picture: Instagram)
They held an intimate service in west London for their beloved Dame Deborah, which saw her husband Sebastien Bowen deliver a eulogy while their children, Hugo and Eloise, both read poems.
The impact of Dame Deborah’s honest and inspiring podcast, and the work of its presenters and behind the scenes team, was acknowledged at the British Podcast Awards at London’s Kennington Park on Saturday.
Hosted by comedians Elis James and John Robins, the ceremony was attended by many notable names in the world of podcasting, including Pandora Sykes, Jamie Laing and Sophie Haboo, Sabrina Elba and Jon Sopel, all of whom presented the awards.
The podcast has touched many hearts with its candid discussions of life with cancer (Picture: Instagram)
Also at the awards, Coiled – a podcast that explores Black Afro Hair – won moment of the year, with host and producer Leanne Alie and assistant producer Sylvie Carlos collecting the award.
Decode took home both the smartest podcast and best entertainment podcast awards. The show delves into the world of UK rap music, analysing the lyrics, beats, and social context of some of the most popular rap albums.
Dear Daughter was awarded best family podcast, as well as the prestigious podcast of the year award, which was previously won by Vent Documentaries in 2021, Brown Girls Do It too in 2020 and George The Poet in 2019.
Jamie Morton and James Cooper, of critically acclaimed podcast My Dad Wrote A Porno, presented the rising star award to Kirk Flash, whose comedy podcast This Is Gay examines the darker side of modern gay life.
Lauren Mahon is the only surviving host of the podcast (Picture: Getty)
Elsewhere, the spotlight award, which recognises a podcast reaching the masses and was presented by TV doctor Dr Xand van Tulleken, was awarded to British Scandal, in which hosts Alice Levine and Matt Forde tell the stories of the murkier side of the British elite, from Phone Hacking to the Profumo Affair.
Funny man James Acaster’s Perfect Sounds scooped the award for best arts and culture podcast, while the best sex and relationships podcast was presented to Assume Nothing: Rape Trial by previous winner Poppy Jay of Brown Girls Do It Too.
Assume Nothing: Rape Trial is narrated by Irish-Canadian actress Amybeth McNulty – best known for starring in Netflix drama series Anne with An E and Stranger Things – and explores a court case which caused Northern Ireland to find itself at the forefront of radical reform in the way rape trials are heard.
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The listeners’ choice award, which is the only award voted for by the public, went to RedHanded, a true crime podcast hosted by Hannah Maguire and Suruthi Bala – which has won the award once previously.
Other winners included Stories of Our Times for best interview podcast, Money Talks for the best business podcast and Effin’ Hormones for the best wellbeing podcast.
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